BONN, Germany, (Reuters) – Negotiators from 185 nations end two weeks of talks on a new climate treaty today with a new blueprint for a pact that omits the most draconian options for greenhouse gas cuts by 2050.
The streamlined 22-page draft also cuts all references in a previous text to “Copenhagen”, the host city for a U.N. summit in December that fell short of a binding deal to slow a rise in temperatures blamed for heatwaves, floods and rising sea levels.
The May 31-June 11 talks are the biggest since the summit, trying to get negotiations back on track even though many delegates say that a legally binding deal is out of reach for 2010 and is more likely in 2011.
The new text, issued shortly before midnight (2200 GMT) yesterday, is meant as a blueprint to guide negotiators to overcome rifts between rich and poor nations when they reconvene at a next session in early August in Bonn.
It outlines a goal of cutting world emissions of greenhouse gases by “at least 50-85 percent from 1990 levels by 2050” and for developed nations to cut emissions by at least 80-95 percent from 1990 levels by mid-century.
